Like our scaffolding systems, Burflex Scaffolding is founded on quality, integrity and consistency. Our head office is based in Hull, we also have contact offices in Sheffield and Leeds.
Builders in Sheffield have found a letter written over 80 years ago hidden in a wall in the Heart of the City construction site. The letter, written by a plasterer who was renovating a chapel in 1938, was embedded in the walls of the building.
BBC News reports that employees from Henry Boot Construction, who are working on the Heart of the City site in Sheffield city centre, converting the historic Bethel Chapel on Cambridge Street into an entertainment venue were stunned when they came across the note rolled up inside a small canister and lodged within a wall cavity.
The letter had been signed by the foreman of Bradbury & Sons, a plastering company, as he worked on the chapel in 1938, two years after the building had closed as a place of worship. It included a list of plasterers who have helped to convert the chapel into a clothing business.
According to the Sheffield Archives, entrepreneur George Binns purchased the former chapel in 1938, planning to convert it into the premises for his clothing business, Outfitters, which he was relocating from Moorhead.
Binns had commissioned work on the chapel which included a two-storey extension and the removal of a small churchyard.
The letter lists the names of the men involved in the work – who were all members of the Plasterers Union – including apprentice ‘Big Teddy’, who could have been as young as 14 under the employment laws of the time.
Henry Boot’s construction workers have now returned the note to the cavity in the wall, and added a similar list of those working on the site today to create a time capsule, and has included the signatures of site supervisor Carl Gelder and apprentice Harry Rogers.
Ian Gresser, the operations manager for Henry Boot Construction said the company was ‘extremely proud’ to be working on flagship developments in its home city, and that the company takes the responsibility to protect findings such as the letter very seriously.
“To uncover an old letter or artefact is always an exciting moment, but it’s particularly special to find something directly linked to the construction industry,” he said.
“Much of the Heart of the City project is about protecting key heritage, particularly along Cambridge Street. So, adding our own letter to the capsule and contributing to the story of the area means a lot to the team. It’s nice to think that people may read our letter alongside the Bradbury & Sons letter in another 100 years.”
Henry Boot Construction is working on three key city-centre developments within the Heart of the City scheme – Kangaroo Works, Cambridge Street Collective and Elshaw House.
Kangaroo Works is a residential development of 365 apartments; Cambridge Street Collective is a cultural and social destination that features a 20,000 sq ft food hall, fine dining restaurant and the Bethel Chapel venue; and Elshaw House is a net-zero office complex.
If you’re looking for scaffolding companies in Sheffield, get in touch with our team today.
